PRINCIPAL’S Perspective

Seeding a wise and sustainable future

Since 2020, visits to our Toorak Campus have not matched the regularity of years prior. Regrettably, until recently, ‘visiting’ had been via a screen for so long that one young swimmer looked up from his hooded tiger towel to comment, “I know you. You’re from Zoom!” Partially delighted by the recognition yet shocked to think my connection with this little learner had thus far only been via remote learning, I have ever since savoured so gratefully the time to walk slowly upon arrival and greet as many children as possible, ever mindful of the gift of being together.

Without question, a favourite spot to interact at Toorak is the herb and vegetable garden, gleefully explored and lovingly tended by students and adults alike. Much is seeded here.

Blessed to be part of an extended family of keen gardeners and orchardists, fond childhood memories include turning soil, watering crops, and relishing the delight of freshly picked fruit and vegetables, especially raspberries and peas. These experiences were lessons in the seasons and in weathering storms. The language associated with such work and bounty oftentimes references ‘cultivation’.

Just as we cultivate the land, so too can we choose to cultivate ideas. In this 111th edition of Light Blue we celebrate the cultivation of ideas seeded by wise choices that remain or are destined to become a sustaining influence in our School’s 167th year and beyond.

50 Years of Co-education

Our Chair of Council, Paddy Handbury (M’72), begins the publication by honouring a very special anniversary. Paddy’s article provides a personal overview of the history of co-education: from the ‘small seed’ that was sown in 1970 when a handful of girls from The Hermitage visited GGS to study Science, Mathematics and Latin, to when his children joined the School in the 1990s, to the opening of Elisabeth Murdoch House in 2010 (named in honour of Paddy’s grandmother, Dame Elisabeth Murdoch AC DBE (Greene, Clyde ’26)), and the move to equal numbers of boys and girls at Timbertop.

First Nations’ Scholars

By 2023, 90 First Nations’ scholars either have or are still studying at our School since the inception of the Indigenous Scholarship programme. To celebrate the growth of this programme, Mahaliah Kickett-Eades’ (Yr7 Ku) story of watching Marlley McNamara (Yr12 Ga) in Anastasia (Senior School Musical 2022) highlights the importance of role models, and links to Mahaliah’s cousin Elijah Weston (Cu’11). Elijah was our very first Indigenous scholarship student, joining GGS from Broken Hill in Year 7 in 2006.

Bostock House

The evolution of Bostock House, from its beginnings in a parish hall at Christ Church Geelong in 1924 to the construction of a school building in Newtown in 1926, to relocation to Highton in 1962 and move back to Newtown to Noble Street in 1998 is a fascinating read, with a new chapter currently unfolding. The cultivation of our northeastern land is in progress as we energise the expansion of our Corio Campus, and eagerly await the arrival of our youngest learners to this site.

Corio Campus Masterplan

Following an extensive stakeholder engagement process to develop a shared vision for the Corio Campus and to assist our project team (of architects, landscape architects and engineers) to shape and develop a successful masterplan with priority projects that will support our Strategic Framework (launched in 2019), we are proud to share the key themes that have emerged. One of those key themes was sustainability, which links to our School’s inaugural Sustainability Strategy, inclusive of policy, initiatives and achievements. This Strategic Project encapsulates so much of what it means to enable Exceptional Education

Primary Years Programme (PYP) of the International Baccalaureate (IB) at Toorak

2022 marks the 25-year anniversary of PYP at Glamorgan, now Toorak Campus. Staff professional learning and curriculum development began in 1997, with the PYP being introduced to classrooms in 1998. Accreditation was then issued by the International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO) in 1999, and since then, the campus continues to be a leader of PYP, locally, nationally and internationally.

Healing & Hope

On White Balloon Day in 2021, I spoke of the humbling and ambitious aspirations for Healing and Hope and our School’s capacity to lead with love and light; a new way of living our values and continuing to learn from our past. This year, the Board of Healing and Hope was established with a unique collection of founding Directors whose insights and wisdom will contribute to the fabric of this wellbeing initiative, which strives to bring comfort and assistance to those of our Geelong Grammar School community who are suffering –survivors, victims of trauma, and their families.

Student Wellbeing

With our refreshed GGS Model of Student Wellbeing, the growth and evolution of Positive Education (PosEd), including our Navigate and Pathways curricular, features in this edition too. Accompanied by a timely article regarding the School’s revised Respectful Relationships curriculum, and a piece reminding us about the importance of belonging, PosEd continues to centre on what it means to live a flourishing life.

Foundation

Our Chair of the Geelong Grammar Foundation, Penny McBain, reflects upon the outstanding achievements of the year, including raising $3.9 million, and the appointment of six new Eminent Members: Silver Harris, Gordon Moffatt AM KSJ (M’48), Andrew Muir, Emma Muir, the late Jeff Peck (Ge’42) and Tony Poolman (FB’60). We commend these members and the efforts of our community to continue to support the seeding of so many scholarships and initiatives.

Each page of this publication cherishes the ‘seeds’ sown by people whose courage to dream a brighter future for our School lives on through the choices and priorities of today. The power of people, collaboration, and knowledge to cultivate ideas that can enact the transformation we need to see now and in generations to come is enriching; it is also fundamental to contemporary and progressive education. Together, we are advancing our promise of Exceptional Education

…From little things big things grow…

Rebecca Cody Principal